“Let me ask you something; how do you know that God exists?”  Spoken from the lips of Eddie Hill, a homeless man with a gift for drawing.  These were not the words of a cynic or scorner; they were the words of a man who was genuinely searching for God and seeking to understand Him.

I could not help but gaze in amazement at Eddie’s artwork as he let me handle each crumpled page; his attention to detail and portrayal of life was as remarkable as it was saddening.  He had pictures of people smiling and laughing, but he also depicted men in utter despair with no hope left and nowhere to go, all drawn on used Xerox paper or wrinkled sketch pad rejects.  It was obvious that Eddie’s art supply came from recycling bins.

I could see a similar despair in Eddie’s eyes but the difference between Eddie and the people he drew, was that he was looking for The Hope, and as I talked to him he was listening so earnestly that I regretted it when we had to leave.  We left with a promise though; the promise that we would return.

One week later, we visited the Drop-Inn Center again; my eyes were all over the place looking for the man with the backpack and eager eyes.  Eddie arrived there shortly after we got there and we presented him with a gift—a new supply of drawing materials and an art bag.  The joy on his face and the thankfulness in his eyes meant more to me than words can ever describe.

As a thank you to us, he drew a quick facial sketch of each of our faces.  I can tell you now, I never wanted to cry more than when that man was drawing me.  It wasn’t about me or a picture of myself, but the effort that he put into it, and his reason for doing it meant the world to me.


Oh, by the way, my answer to Eddie’s question; I pointed him toward the Bible.  I still have not given him the full story of the gospel, but I plan on going back to see him sometime to finish. Eddie made a huge impact on me, and that was only from one sketch; what kind of impact will I make by telling him about Jesus and what He did?

Nick Hilliard
BSWE Student
Biblical Evangelism Course